Changes are on horizon for Southeastern Massachusetts Bioreserve

Sunday

Apr 29, 2012 at 12:01 AMApr 29, 2012 at 5:59 PM

Only a decade into its existence, the Southeastern Massachusetts Bioreserve is likely to undergo changes in the coming years, even if one of its main purposes is to stay exactly the same, the way it would be without human interference.

Change can be inevitable, however.

On the western end of the 13,600-acre Bioreserve is the SouthCoast Life Science and Technology Park at Fall River, which doesn’t yet have any tenants but was opened to vehicles a few months ago with the new Exit 8B off Route 24.

Grant Welker

Only a decade into its existence, the Southeastern Massachusetts Bioreserve is likely to undergo changes in the coming years, even if one of its main purposes is to stay exactly the same, the way it would be without human interference.

Change can be inevitable, however.

On the western end of the 13,600-acre Bioreserve is the SouthCoast Life Science and Technology Park at Fall River, which doesn’t yet have any tenants but was opened to vehicles a few months ago with the new Exit 8B off Route 24.

By the eastern end, the Aquinnah Wampanoag Tribe has identified a 230-acre tract as a potential resort casino site.

The Life Science and Technology Park, also called the Biopark, is a welcome addition to city and other officials. In fact, it was made possible thanks to a land swap that also helped with the creation of the Bioreserve. The city took 300 acres from the city for the Biopark, and the state took control through a conservation restriction on 4,300 city-owned acres east of North Watuppa Pond.

The casino, which would be built near the Westport and Dartmouth borders near the Copicut Reservoir, is adjacent to the Bioreserve. On April 24, the Fall River City Council approved a resolution proposed by Councilor Raymond Mitchell for the city to consider taking over the property, by eminent domain if need be, for additional preservation land.
“I’m very concerned about what would happen to the entire area out there,” Mitchell said in an interview. “It’s a very pristine area out there.”

Property owner John Hasenjaeger said Friday that a resort casino — one that could offer a spa, horseback riding and more, in addition to gaming — would enhance the Bioreserve by drawing people for passive recreation. The location between Blossom, Indian Town and Yellow Hill roads “would be the perfect place to put a resort,” he said.

“It wouldn’t bother anybody, because it’s out in the woods.”

Hasenjaeger criticized the City Council for the resolution, the run-down condition of the Bioreserve, and the suggestion that it would harm abutters, who he said are a great distance away.

“How dare anyone even suggest that this is a bad fit,” Hasenjaeger said. “It’s nutty.”

Asked if he thought a resort casino would be built there, he said no. But he thought the property could also be developed as housing or possibly a Native American museum, developed either by the Aquinnahs or other builders.

Linton Harrington, the education coordinator for the Trustees of Reservation, which manages a 516-acre portion of the Bioreserve, said the remote site would not be suitable for a casino. “It could have a huge impact” on the Bioreserve, he said.

Plans for the future of the conservation land revolve around more programming and purchasing smaller parcels spotted throughout the Bioreserve. The Trustees, for example, is planning to double to 30 the number of high school students enrolled this summer in its South Coast Youth Corps program.

Harrington recalled when no public access was available to much of the Bioreserve land, in contrast to all the options available now. “It sure is a huge shift,” he said.